Sebastian Coe has vowed to guide the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) “back to trust” after a series of corruption and doping scandals that has seen global athletics crash into its darkest ever days.
Speaking after an IAAF Council meeting on Thursday, Coe stepped down from his lucrative ambassadorial role for Nike over what some people dubbed as a conflict of interest, notably over the award of the 2021 world athletics championships to Eugene, located in the same state, Oregon, as the giant US sportswear firm.
“The journey back to trust is not a scientific one, there’s is no certainty in this, but it does have to start with making sure that we have an organization that is fit for purpose and can deliver the services that it needs to, and can maintain and rebuild the reputation that clearly has been hit very hard in the last few weeks,” Coe said.
Photo: EPA
Coe’s alleged conflict of interest to one side, his predecessor Lamine Diack is under French police investigation for allegedly having accepted more than 1 million euros (US$1.06 million) in bribes to allow athletes compete, despite them having tested positive for banned substances.
In the wake of those shocking revelations, the IAAF then acted on a bombshell report by an independent commission of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) by banning Russia from all international competition because of what it called systematic state-sponsored doping of its athletes.
Coe, a two-time Olympic 1500m gold medalist for Britain, was in no doubt that the transformation of the IAAF and athletics, the Olympic Games’ main sport, would take some time.
“How long that will take I don’t know, but it will in total outsee my mandate,” the 59-year-old said. “One of the prevailing sentiments around the council table was there was not a single person in that room who did not remotely underestimate the challenges we face in addressing the failures and rebuilding trust in our sport.”
When Coe took power from the disgraced Diack in August, he beat Sergey Bubka on a zero-tolerance stance on doping that was the backbone of rebuilding trust.
Coe has the support of the IAAF Council, the 26-strong body which governs world athletics.
US Track and Field Federation president Stephanie Hightower said Coe had their full support, with the accent on winning back not only fans, but the athletes themselves.
“What a time to join the IAAF Council,” Hightower said after just her second outing in the role. “Not one of my colleagues underestimates the challenges that our sport faces today. We know we have to rebuild trust and confidence, but not only with our fans, but more importantly with our athletes and this is going to be a long journey. But we also need to show our athletes that we are fully serious about supporting clean athletes and we will not tolerate any cheating at any level.”
“We also recognize that the whole system has failed our athletes, the entire system, not just in Russia, but around the world, and so we need to better understand the triggers and the flags that will enable us to identify problems early and then fix them sooner,” Hightower added.
With Coe having ceded his Nike role, at the cost of ￡100,000 (US$150, 500) per year, there were calls for his role as IAAF president to be properly salaried.
“The athletes want someone at the top to be paid to deliver professional services for the sport,” said former sprinter Frank Fredericks, now head of the IAAF athletes commission. “Especially considering what Seb has given up.”
“The current noise level around this ambassadorial role is not good for the IAAF and it is not good for Nike, and frankly it is a distraction to the 18-hour days I and our teams are working to steady the ship,” Coe said.
SSC Napoli will have to wait one more week to seal the Serie A title after on Sunday being held to a goalless draw at Parma, while closest rivals Inter drew 2-2 in a dramatic game with SS Lazio. Antonio Conte’s team stayed one point ahead of Inter and were unfortunate not to win after twice striking the woodwork through Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Matteo Politano, while Scott McTominay also had a free-kick tipped onto the crossbar. The away side thought they would be handed a chance to take the points from the penalty spot in the 96th minute when David Neres
Omar Marmoush’s stunning long-range strike on Tuesday upstaged Kevin de Bruyne on the Manchester City great’s Etihad farewell. Marmoush let fly from about 30m to put City ahead in their 3-1 win against AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League. The victory moved Pep Guardiola’s team up to third in the standings and left qualification for the UEFA Champions League in their own hands heading into the last round of the season. “It’s really important. To be in the Champions League after what happened [this season] will be really nice,” the City manager said. De Bruyne was making his final home appearance for City before
Brighton & Hove Albion’s Jack Hinshelwood on Monday sealed a dramatic 3-2 victory against Liverpool to leave the English Premier League champions without a win since clinching the title. Arne Slot’s side took the lead through Harvey Elliott’s early opener before Yasin Ayari equalized at the American Express Stadium. Dominik Szoboszlai restored Liverpool’s advantage just before halftime, but Brighton staged a late fightback as Kaoru Mitoma leveled before Hinshelwood came off the bench to net with his first touch. Liverpool have taken just one point from their three matches following the title-clinching rout of Tottenham Hotspur on April 27. The Reds have lost at
Logan O’Hoppe, Taylor Ward and Matthew Lugo homered, and the Los Angeles Angels spoiled Clayton Kershaw’s season debut, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-9 on Saturday night to take the first two games of the three-game series. Kershaw allowed three runs and threw 38 pitches in the first inning. The three-time National League Cy Young Award winner lasted four innings, giving up five runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Shoulder, toe and knee injuries limited Kershaw to seven games last season, and his 2025 debut was delayed as he recovered from multiple offseason surgeries. O’Hoppe had two hits with
RSS